"To provide and maintain a Navy;
To make Rules for the Government and Regulation of the land and naval Forces;
To provide for calling forth the Militia to execute the Laws of the Union, suppress Insurrections and repel Invasions;"
This is an overwhelmingly negative statement, but I wonder if the Militia could ever be called forth to ensure the "general welfare" of that illusive entity called "the United States".
"To provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining, the Militia, and for governing such Part of them as may be employed in the Service of the United States, reserving to the States respectively, the Appointment of the Officers, and the Authority of training the Militia according to the discipline prescribed by Congress;
To exercise exclusive Legislation in all Cases whatsoever, over such District (not exceeding ten Miles square) as may, by Cession of particular States, and the Acceptance of Congress, become the Seat of the Government of the United States, and to exercise like Authority over all Places purchased by the Consent of the Legislature of the State in which the Same shall be, for the Erection of Forts, Magazines, Arsenals, dock-Yards, and other needful Buildings;--And
To make all Laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into Execution the foregoing Powers, and all other Powers vested by this Constitution in the Government of the United States, or in any Department or Officer thereof."
Congress is the place where laws are made which, once again, includes providing for the "general welfare" of a "nation", whatever a "nation" is.
Sections 9 and 10 are extremely important as well.
Section 9 is extremely important to those accused of breaking the law. It contains verbiage protecting the rights of the accused.
It is also very important because it expressly declares that The FUSA must be under attack before the Congress can consider lifting the writ of habeas corpus. It does not state that Congress can overturn that protection if the Executive Branch believes that the nation may someday be threatened by rogue states which have future plans for making nuclear weapons. How could it? The founders and framers had little if any knowledge of what a nuclear weapon might be.
Again, Section 9 continues to reinforce Congress's power to control the purse strings of the US and its Treasury.
For those who believe that the income tax is unconstitutional, the amendment to the following passage from Section 9, the 16th Amendment to the Constitution, which can be accessed by following the link, proves otherwise.
"No Capitation, or other direct, Tax shall be laid, unless in Proportion to the Census or enumeration herein before directed to be taken."
Section 10, in fact, declares that, if states feel the need to raise revenue, that revenue should ultimately end up in the Treasury of The FUSA.
Maybe I'm beating a dead horse here, but I believe the founders and framers thought that money would be best handled by the Congress. They placed full faith for funding in the Congress. Can it be any clearer than in Article I of The Constitution?
